Wilks Will Let Tepper Determine if He Did an 'Incredible Job'

Did Steve Wilks do enough to earn the Panthers' head coaching job?

"Win the day." 

That is a phrase that Steve Wilks has repeated numerous times since becoming the interim head coach of the Carolina Panthers. When he fielded questions about his future or the playoffs, he would pull that out of his back pocket to ensure the focus remains on the present.

On Tuesday, Wilks had another opportunity to "win the day" as he officially interviewed for the Panthers' head coaching vacancy. Being an NFL head coach is a dream of many, but this one, in particular, means more to Wilks who is a native of Charlotte. 

During his end-of-season press conference on Monday, Wilks was asked point-blank if he felt he did enough to deserve the job.

"That's not my call. I can't say."

What he did say, though, was how proud he was of the men in the locker room for buying in and never giving up despite the enormous amount of adversity they went through. Sometimes as a coach, you regret doing or not doing certain things, especially after you fall one game short of making the playoffs. For Wilks, that's not the case. He stood firm on what he did and noted the team's progress, essentially giving a public pitch as to why he's the right man for the job.

"I would say [I have] no [regrets]. Because as I look out here and expand my vision, and I see all of you guys, let's just call a spade a spade. None of you guys even expected us to even be in this situation. So, to be able to take a 1-4 team and to be able to get to the doorstep of possibly winning this division and then going to the playoffs, I have no regrets whatsoever. To create an identity. To breathe some life back into this football team and the respect within this organization that we started to receive throughout the league of the identity that we created. We set franchise records as far as rushing and total yards. We went on the road and won big football games that no one gave us a chance to win in Seattle. So no, I don't have any regrets."

Three months ago when team owner David Tepper introduced Steve Wilks as the interim head coach, he told the media that Wilks would be considered for the head coaching job if he did "an incredible job". Considering the hand he was dealt, I think it's safe to say he lived up to that qualification.

"I think that's someone's opinion...what they consider to be incredible. What I consider to be incredible in the things that I do around the house, my wife doesn't see it that way. It just depends on how you perceive what's incredible. I'll let him determine that factor."

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